manynovel Chapter 294: The former emperor, Jiang Youzhen is really brave!
Chapter 294: The former emperor, Jiang Youzhen is really brave!
"Here they come! Here they come! The next are the Seven Evils." Everyone pricked up their ears. They wanted to see if Jiang Youzhen's Seven Evils were the same as what they understood.
Zhao Zan's voice gradually became excited, and it was obvious that he was also looking forward to it.
"...Those who take advantage of others' guilt in the name of their minions and exploit the people are the tigers of the soldiers and slaves. Those who use the power of the government to manipulate the law and harm the people are the tigers of the corrupt officials..."
The seven tigers correspond to the seven evils, which are strictly framed within the terms of the title and elaborated in detail.
After Qi Hai finished reading, the latter part also gave examples to illustrate the argument of the article. But the more Zhao Zan read, the more frightened he became. Jiang Youzhen was really brave to write!
What example did he cite? It turned out to be the story of Emperor Ruming, the last emperor of the Great Sheng Dynasty, who imposed heavy taxes and imposed miscellaneous levies, causing the people to suffer.
Where did the founding emperor of the Dayun Dynasty seize the throne? He seized it from Emperor Ruming.
At that time, the Zhao family, as a century-old noble family, broke into the palace in the name of clearing the court of corrupt officials, and then seized the country from the Ma family.
Although the people were living in poverty and suffering at that time, the means used by the Zhao family to seize power were not glorious.
Jiang Youzhen is really talking about something that is not relevant. Doesn't she know that the late emperor was very taboo about mentioning this? She is really childish and fearless!
Emperor Ru Ming was greedy for pleasure. He loved to indulge in literary arts and had countless romantic affairs, and often ignored state affairs.
In order to maintain his extravagant lifestyle, he ignored the border wars and ethnic uprisings in various places and ordered the eunuchs to collect taxes everywhere.
This behavior is called tax supervision and is recorded in history books.
These tax collectors not only levied heavy taxes but also extorted money from the people. They were a great threat to the previous dynasty, and the fall of the previous dynasty was also related to this matter.
Everyone held their breath, Jiang Youzhen is really brave!
Wen Ruyu looked helpless. This kid dared to write anything! Because of the affairs of the previous emperor, people rarely mentioned the previous dynasty. I didn't expect Jiang Youzhen to write about it in the policy questions.
Fortunately, Jiang Youzhen had some sense and only mentioned it briefly, talking only about the dangers of tax supervision.
At the end, Jiang Youzhen also summarized the seven evils mentioned earlier.
Everyone counted on their fingers and found that the total number of words was not over a thousand, but at least eight or nine hundred, right?
Jiang Youzhen took less than an hour to answer the questions. Apart from anything else, his hand speed was scary enough.
After reading it, there was a complete silence. Everyone looked at each other, not knowing what to say.
Did Jiang Youzhen write badly? No! She wrote very well, so well that they were moved and felt inferior.
"What do you think of this article?" Lin Jiuan was the first to break the silence. He looked at Jiang Youzhen deeply.
For some reason, Jiang Youzhen reminded him of what his father had said, about the ministers who dared to die in court during the previous emperor's reign.
They put their lives and deaths aside for the country and the people. If they had not been involved in the late emperor's affairs, there would probably be no Dayun Dynasty today.
But now the court is relatively stable. Does the emperor really like these loyal advices?
"Master Lin! This article is undoubtedly a top-notch work. From the beginning of the article standing upright, to the seven tigers corresponding to the seven evils, it fits the topic and is worded rigorously. Then there are the examples and proofs, and finally the proposals at the end. I think this article is close to perfection."
The first person to stand up was Su Wang, which surprised everyone.
How noble is Su Wang? He can say that Jiang Youzhen's article is close to perfection, which is simply the highest praise in his life.
It’s not like he hasn’t made comments before, his words were sharp, outspoken, and he was very good at finding faults.
"Jiang Youzhen's article is indeed good. Whether it is the correspondence or the discussion, it is not an exaggeration to say that it is a top-notch work. But to say that it is close to perfection is too much praise, isn't it?"
Luye Hermit glanced at Su Wang. Just now, when Su Wang was discussing the first Four Books, he had praised Jiang Youzhen highly. This old scholar who looked down on others could actually look at Jiang Youzhen differently.
He admitted that Jiang Youzhen was indeed excellent, but so what?
"Oh? Mr. Luye, do you think there is something wrong? Feel free to point it out!" Su Wang turned around and faced Pan Changye. He had been unhappy with Pan Changye for a long time.
When everyone heard this, they thought, "Yes! Then we have to point out what's wrong."
Pan Changye choked. Actually, he couldn't think of any improvement to make. But there was one thing he could find fault with.
"If we say that the case of the tax collector in the previous dynasty was one of excessive taxes and levies, there is no doubt about that." Mr. Luye stroked his goatee.
Everyone nodded in unison, isn't it?
"But none of the seven evils I asked can be matched. How do you explain this?"
When everyone heard this, they immediately frowned. One of them said directly, "Why doesn't it match? It's true that it doesn't match the meaning, but aren't the seven evils in the title all metaphors?"
"Yeah! It's not far-fetched!" someone echoed.
"So what? I think it has nothing to do with the Seven Evils, which is a bit forced."
"Why don't they make sense? Taking advantage of the people, amassing wealth, and taking advantage of the people's blood and flesh, aren't these all seven evils? Don't these make sense, either?"
"Mr. Luye, I think there is nothing wrong with the examples in this paragraph. They connect the previous and the next and echo each other." Zhao Zan's tone also turned cold. If they were to be serious about this and insist that it was off topic, then there would be another round of debate.
Ke Zhenqiu, who was standing by, couldn't help but sigh in his heart after listening to the article. No wonder the magistrate thought so highly of her, she was indeed a promising talent.
However, after only learning the basics, he was able to produce such a brilliant article.
He glanced at what he had written in front of him. It seemed that it was clearer than Jiang Youzhen's. His subsequent explanation of the Seven Evils did have some deviations, although only a little, and he could also use his personal opinion to justify it.
What's more, the article was well written and was indeed a masterpiece. He smiled bitterly and shook his head. He had indeed lost.
Regardless of whether Jiang Youzhen's example is off-topic or not, his article is somewhat unpresentable.
"I think it's inappropriate too! It's not quite suitable." Someone echoed.
In fact, there is another point, which is the mention of the previous dynasty. This point is particularly sensitive, and even if the candidates go to take the exam, they will not mention it if possible.
"Is there anything wrong? Feel free to step forward and give us your opinions." Although Lin Jiuan felt that Jiang Youzhen was too aggressive, he was still willing to protect her.
Who dares to stand up and give advice? Everyone shook their heads. They didn't dare. If anyone wanted to give advice, it would be those three great scholars. What were their identities? Compared to Jiang Youzhen, they were far inferior.
Everyone was whispering, many thought Jiang Youzhen's writing was correct, and many thought it was a little far-fetched. But everyone agreed that the article was good, there was no doubt about that.
But if Pan Changye insists on saying that the topic is off topic, then Jiang Youzhen can only blame himself for his bad luck.
"I have just stated my point of view. I wonder what Jiang Youzhen has to say in his defense?" Pan Changye looked at Jiang Youzhen, only to see that the boy was peeling an orange very calmly.
I have to say that writing is really a brain-consuming job. She even felt hungry.
As soon as he heard his name, Jiang Youzhen looked up at Pan Changye, and then put down the orange in his hand.